We've come to the end of another year, and as we wave goodbye to 2013, we figured it was only fitting that we share the most popular stories published on Gear Live this year, as determined by our readers (we've also got the top ten most read stories regardless of publish date, as well as the ten most popular Gear Live videos of 2013!) These are the ten stories that were read the most, and when you consider that fact, it's pretty surprising to see what made the list. Let's kick it off with our most read story of the year:

Advertisement

Apple has released OS X 10.11 El Capitan to the public, and all users with compatible Macs are able to download the updated version of Apple’s desktop operating system for free from the Mac App Store. Just launch the Mac App Store to grab the download, or if you don’t see it, you can use this link to take you right to it: OS X El Capitan

OS X El Capitan brings with it a slew of bug fixes and performance improvements, tightening up everything from last year’s Yosemite release. That said, there are still quite a few user-facing improvements as well. These include:

During a demo of the new iPhone 6s 3D Touch feature at the Hey Siri, Give Us A Hint event, Apple's Craig Federighi opened an email on his iPhone 6s from Phil Schiller that announced that OS X El Capitan would be released on September 30th. Apple's latest OS X 10.11 Mac operating system has been in beta since WWDC 2015 in June. Thanks to that peek at Federighi's email, we now know that all Mac users with compatible computers will be able to update to El Capitan three weeks from today, completely for free.

Parallels, the company that makes Parallels Desktop (our favorite software virtualization software for Mac,) has announced the release of Parallels Desktop 11. Interested users can buy Parallels Desktop 11 for $79.99, while users of prior versions 9 and 10 receive upgrade pricing of $49.99. Major operating system support in Parallels Desktop 11 includes support for the latest Microsoft OS, Windows 10, as well as Apple’s upcoming OS X 10.11 El Capitan, which is set to launch this fall.

Earlier today Apple released OS X El Capitan Developer Beta 5. Developers who are already running Yosemite can get the 1.34GB update through the Mac App Store, while those who are looking to install it for the first time will need to log in to the Apple Developer Portal. As for the rest of the world, OS X El Cap is set to launch this fall, focusing on tightening up OS X and crushing nagging bugs, while also introducing features like split view apps, expanded Spotlight, an expanded Notes app, performance improvements, and more to Apple's desktop operating system. Those interested in beta testing can head over to the Apple beta website.

Apple has introduced the first desktop computer with a built-in 5K display in the iMac with Retina 5K display, and we are opening one up in this episode! The 5K Retina display is packed with 14.7 million pixels, with a resolution of 5120 x 2880. Yes, that is insane, and gives a lot of screen real estate and leeway to work on dense projects, like video editing and photo editing.

Check out our unboxing and overview of this beautiful iMac and the amazing display that it packs - it's the Mac with the best visual clarity.

Apple has just announced OS X . As featured in a leak earlier today, the new operating system takes a bunch of design cues from iOS to bring visual parity between the two Apple operating systems. Apple's Craig Federighi showed off all of the new features, followed by a demo.

Tentpole features in the redesign include new, flat icons that are reminiscent of the iOS 7 redesign. An optional dark mode changes the menu bar from white to black, which allows you to get rid of the striking white for those who don't want it. Apple has also brought in a bunch of transparency and translucency, with the frosted glass look throughout the UI.

Apple's WWDC 2014 kicks off this Monday morning, and the company is hard at work getting the Moscone Center dolled up prior to showtime. One of the posters that is going up is the one for OS X 10.10, and it may have revealed the name of the next major Apple desktop operating system.

The banner, pictured above (credit to The Verge,) shows the El Capitan granite monolith in Yosemite. Apple has filed for the rights to the named OS X El Cap, OS X El Capitan, and OS X Yosemite. Of course, there's no way to know which name Apple will be going with until they make the announcement on Monday, but the banner certainly does narrow things down quite a bit, doesn't it?